A BRAVE Scots soldier fears his young family may end up on the street after he was made redundant by the Army.

William Brown, 25, who won medals for doing his duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, was told he would have to leave his beloved Black Watch due to cutbacks.

To make matters worse, he was then told he and wife Traceyanne, 29, and their daughter, Bailey, four, must leave their Army house in Inverness.

Now – despite being on a council housing list since October – the Browns face the prospect of homelessness as they seek to move back to their home town of Dunfermline, Fife.

Considering what I have done for my country, I feel let down

William Brown

William said: “Considering what I have done for my country, I feel let down.

“Fife Council would rather give houses to drug addicts and ex-convicts than someone who would pay the rent and keep the house in good order.”

William, a private in the Black Watch, was on his final tour of Afghanistan when he was told he would soon be out of a job. Since then, the soldier of nine years has been trying to move back to his family’s roots in Fife. But Fife Council says he has no connections to the area, so must wait a year for a home.

The authority has a policy that those leaving the armed forces will be given priority for housing if they have connections to the area.

William said: “How can I have no connection to Fife?

“I grew up there, all my family is there. What I fear the most is ending up in a homeless shelter.”

Traceyanne revealed the couple are still mourning the loss of a son Jack, who was stillborn in August last year. She said: “William’s been serving the country since he was 15, so he should be able to get a house after being forced to leave the Army.”

The family’s case is the just the latest scandal facing war heroes. Former Scots Guard Jason Eadie, who served his country for 24 years, has been told that his family – including a son with cerebral palsy – could wait 15 years for a house.

Ex-Highlander Calum Grant and his family fear they could be stuck on the waiting list for nine years.

Campaigners fear as many as 5,000 ex-servicemen and women are homeless or sleeping rough in Scotland. Alistair Black, of Fife Council, said: “We have been unable to make them an offer of a tenancy due to the lengthy waiting list and low property turnovers.

“We will continue to do our best to help them and look for accommodation in the interim.”

Last December SNP minister Keith Brown ordered a review into how councils house former service personnel.

In England, members of the armed forces are awarded the same status as essential workers with housing points.